Shock jock Howard Stern revealed on his radio program yesterday that he is a member of the nominating committee for the SAG Awards and he intends to reward celebrities who have appeared on his program or who have been kind to him in the past. How did this bizarre state of affairs come about? Every year 2,100 members of the Screen Actors Guild are randomly chosen to select the nominees for the organization's awards. Stern, who played himself in 1997's Private Parts, evidently has kept his dues up and he was chosen this year.
Recent onscreen performances like those of Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married, Mickey Rourke as Randy "The Ram" Robinson in The Wrestler, Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men, and Daniel Day Lewis in There Will Be Blood seem like no-brainers from the second half of the decade, whether viewed as breakout roles, rebirth, or just a return to form for these actors.
But we were pleasantly surprised that both Mark Ruffalo and Laura Linney were recognized for their work in Kenneth Lonergan's You Can Count On Me, and simply shocked that Denzel Washington's showy performance as bad cop Alonzo in Training Day isn't just remembered as a punchline at this point.
EW's "Hollywood Insider" blog thinks so. Hoffman and Barbra Streisand were a hilarious pairing as Ben Stiller's parents in Meet the Fockers, but it looks like Hoffman might not return for Little Fockers (the second sequel to the hit comedy Meet the Parents). Even though "Hoffman had tentatively agreed to appear in what was to be a very funny cameo at the end of the film," according to EW, that's now looking unlikely.
Sources tell EW.com that there has been strife between Hoffman and the
studio over the size of the part, the scheduling of the days on set and
other difficulties.
Streisand reportedly still has a prominent role as Roz Focker in Little Fockers. Hoffman's performance as Bernie Focker was easily the best part of the otherwise excruciating Meet the Fockers, though, so does it even matter anymore? Or can new cast members Jessica Alba, Lara Dern, and Harvey Keitel somehow save this three-quel?
I'm aware that the Internet has been afloat with Spider-Man 4 casting rumors in recent days. While Sony Pictures insists no decisions have been made, sources tell me that the producers have approached Anne Hathaway to star in the film.
Finke reports that Hathaway would not replace Kirsten Dunst, who stars as Mary Jane Watson in the superhero franchise; no other details of her potential role are known. Online commenters tend to assume that the role in question must still be The Black Cat.
As The New York Times, The Huffington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and other media-centric publications have all reported recently, Hollywood has been dealing with major cutbacks on premieres, drops in screenwriter salaries, studio losses, and maybe most shockingly the fact that a “big name” no longer needs to be attached to a project to score a big opening weekend.
But this is not the first time Hollywood has been in panic mode, the L.A. Times noted recently. In 1969, Paramount laid off 150 employees, while Warner Bros. suffered $59 million in losses, MGM $53 million, and Fox $67 million. The major studios were all being run by the old Hollywood moguls, who no longer had a feel for youth culture and were losing money by producing knockoffs of past successes instead of doing something new and creative. Fast forward 40 years, and the conversation hasn’t changed much.
Watch this new clip from Nine, offering a brief glimpse of sultry Penelope Cruz performing "A Call From the Vatican":
Nine is director Rob Marshall's film adaptation of the Tony-winning Broadway musical (which is itself based on Federico Fellini's film 8 1/2) about a world-famous film director struggling to balance all of the women in his life. Daniel Day Lewis stars as Guido Contini, with Cruz as his mistress Carla. Nine also stars Nicole Kidman, Marion Cotillard, Kate Hudson, Fergie, Judi Dench, and Sophia Loren.
This award season’s unexpected hit, “Precious,”stormed into theaters last weekend. The critically acclaimed film tells the story of an obese illiterate teenager in 1980s Harlem. But it also features the usually glamorous Mariah Carey, known for her sometimes elegant and often daring red carpet ensembles, as a pale-faced plain-Jane social worker, a role which has been critically praised. (Could this possibly make up for the slamming she received after "Glitter?") Carey is not the firstred carpet bombshell to dress down to impress, in what CNN calls the “take-me-seriously” effect.
Elizabeth Taylor can be credited with starting this trend in the ’60s, when she gained thirty pounds for the film “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” The role ended up earning the actress her second Best Actress Oscar. But Ms. Taylor is not the only one to walk home with a little golden man after piling on the pounds, taking off the makeup, and flattening the hair.
MTV's Splash Page reports that in an interview with MTV News, comedian Dane Cook revealed that he wants to play supervillain The Riddler in the next Batman film.
"I love the new Dark Knight series and Batman Begins," Cook told MTV
News. "If they brought back The Riddler -- a new Riddler the way
they did with The Joker -- that would be bad-ass. I would do that."
So, Cook's "original" idea is to play a comic book character that another, funnier comedian (Jim Carrey) has already played, in a style that another, better actor (Heath Ledger) has already played it? We can't believe this guy gets accused of stealing jokes from other comedians...
In other potential supervillain casting news, Rachel McAdams is apparently being considered for a role in Spider-Man 4. Mania.com reports that McAdams (Wedding Crashers, The Notebook) met with producers and "is said to be a top contender for the role of Felicia Hardy, known to comic fans as The Black Cat."
While promoting his new film The Strain, director Guillermo Del Toro has revealed that he will play a small onscreen role in his upcoming film adaptation of The Hobbit. Del Toro will reportedly play a "small monster" in the Lord of the Rings prequel.
/Film reports: "Speaking in an interview on German television, Del Toro said the
creature he will play himself is 'not an important one, just a
background guy'." Watch the video interview below:
I had a hand on the design of the creature and I will personally sculpt
the appliances that will be applied on my face and hands. I used to
sculpt the creatures for NECROPIA (my FX company) and I miss it a bit.
I will have a line or two and die quickly.
Everyone has something they just can't live without, right?
For some, it might be a morning cup of coffee or a trip to the gym, and for
others, maybe something more dangerous.
In the case of young Leo
Ruspoli, his insatiable need to live life on the edge nearly landed him in
prison. Leo's brother Tao explores this recklessness in his first narrative
feature film "FIX," which tells the story of the day he had to scrape
together $5,000 by 8 p.m. in order to check his brother into rehab to avoid three
years in prison. Tao's real-life wife, actress Olivia Wilde, stars along
with newcomer Shawn Andrews as Leo.
In advance of the movie's November 14th premiere in New York City, the makers
of "FIX" are asking you to make a short video describing your daily fix, with some pretty snazzy
prizes up for grabs. As Ruspoli describes in the video below, the fix can be
something as benign-seeming as playing the flamenco guitar (as in his case).
First place wins you two round-trip tickets to the film's premiere, two nights hotel stay in New
York, a walk on the red carpet with Olivia Wilde and
the director, a chance to screen your video at the premiere, and a digital camera or iPod. Second and third place also
feature some lovely rewards, as outlined on the contest's website. The contest
runs now through November 10th.
